Cyber attacks threaten South Korean nuclear safety

Abstract

Subject Cyber security in South Korea's civil nuclear power sector. Significance Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) became the victim of sustained cyber attacks beginning in early December, and admitted on December 30 that the intrusions were still underway. President Park Geun-hye on December 23 called the attacks a grave matter for national security. KHNP and the South Korean government now face strong pressure to close down the cyber attacks, bring the perpetrators to justice and offer a public accounting of how the breaches could have occurred. Impacts North Korea has not been blamed, but will feature in policy discussion nevertheless. That the attacks happened so soon after those on Sony Pictures is a coincidence, but will magnify the impact. The attacks will feed public perceptions that nuclear power is dangerous, emboldening anti-nuclear activists. The company's and government's responses will feed perceptions that lax regulation and lack of transparency are pervasive in South Korea. The United States, China, Japan and some EU countries will become more directly involved in Korean cyber issues.